Luke 6:38 -"Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you." [NKJV]

Have you ever received a gift that changed your life in a dramatic way? Gifts, small or large, hold potential for huge impact!

Your gift to BrookLink allows pastors and church leaders to teach Scripture more accurately, preach Christ-centered sermons, and humbly lead with purpose. Consequently, churches become healthier and stronger and communities are impacted.

That’s why I’m asking you to make a gift to BrookLink on #GivingTuesday.

Watch this video where you can hear Pastor Mudidi from Democratic Republic of Congo share how BrookLink has “helped me so much in improving how to preach the word of God…since I went through BrookLink’s training it has improved my way of preaching. I have received from my church, testimonies from my people, ‘now your message is more clear and concise’. I praise God for what he has done through BrookLink’s ministry."

#GivingTuesday reflects a very simple idea that Jesus spoke of in the New Testament called, “the law of self-administered return.” Here’s how it works: God invites us to turn on the faucet of generosity so that a heavenly reservoir waiting to flow back towards us begins. A small decision results in a huge impact.

That’s why #GivingTuesday is not just a good idea—it’s a good practice! Think of a way for your family, your business, your small group, your community or your organization to come together and give more. Invite your friends to join you, and be a part of a celebration of generosity.

As you plan for #GivingTuesday, or any year-end gifts, please consider BrookLink in your giving. Your gift will further the work of equipping, empowering and releasing church leaders like Pastor Mudidi across the globe.

I’ve just returned from a ten-day visit to Egypt. I was invited by my friend, Yani Mafdy, to teach at the Tyrannus Missionary School outside of Cairo. The school’s mission is to equip and train Egyptian and Sudanese national evangelists and church planters to proclaim the gospel to unreached peoples across North Africa. The school has plans to start 10 such training centers across the Arab-speaking world.

Pastor Ian Lawson, Lead Pastor at the Evangelical Free Church of Lethbridge in Lethbridge, Alberta, joined me. While we were students at Trinity Seminary 30 years ago we dreamed of one day traveling and teaching together. What a joy to see our dream fulfilled! Ian taught on the Book of James and I taught a course on Spiritual Formation for Leadership.

Ian and I were privileged to teach 22 Sudanese nationals—11 from the northern region, 9 from South Sudan and 2 from the Darfur region. Each year several hundred apply for the opportunity to study at Tyrannus, but only 10-12 are accepted into the 18-month program. These young men are all between 22 and 24 years of age. They come from challenging situations and know they will return to conditions of poverty, war and persecution. Upon completion of the program they agree to return to their homeland Sudan to plant new churches.

In addition to these 22 Sudanese, we also had six Egyptians join the training. These men and women all clearly articulated a call to serve Christ’s mission somewhere in the Middle East. One gentleman named Michel is a medical doctor preparing to practice medicine while planting a church in Mauritania. Another Egyptian couple are pursuing ministry among Syrian refugees in Lebanon or Turkey.

If ever there were a ‘poster child’ for BrookLink, it would be Ezra. You can read all about his life in an Old Testament book named for him. Ezra lived during a very dark and discouraging time in ancient Israel’s history.

In today’s world, we hear regularly the plight of exiles forced from their countries because of famine, war or religious oppression. Stripped from their homeland and driven by desperation, these misplaced peoples risk life and limb for a better future. Who will minister to these displaced people?

Ezra was called upon by God to minister to a displaced people group who had just survived seventy years of exile. His mission is summarized in these words, “For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel” (Ezra 7:10).

Study, do, and teach—present a model for ministers around the world. Long-range effective teaching of the Bible does not happen without long hours of ongoing study of the Bible. We equip those we train in how to study their Bibles.

It’s mid-summer in good ole Milwaukee. After a cool start to the summer, the temps have risen, the ethnic festival season is in full swing, and the debate ad nauseam about a new Bucks Basketball Arena has all but subsided. Wisconsin is a great place to be during summertime.

It’s been good to be home for a few weeks. June was a busy month for BrookLink with events in Seattle, ministry at the Advocate Summit of Mission Aviation Fellowship in Idaho, and my first-time trip to southeastern Poland to train ‘Free Church’ pastors and leaders in three cities.

This week I leave for Kinshasa, the capital city of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR-Congo). In 2007 leaders from the African Evangelical Free Churches met to address the African Church’s need to reach Africa with the gospel. One leader shared, “It’s our job as African Christians to reach Africa’s unreached people.” Pastor Nubako Selenga was their unanimous choice to lead this new movement.

July 23-August 2, 2015

BrookLink will be in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo July 23-August 2, 2015. Lee will be training at The Mission and Leadership Equipping Center, a ministry of ReachAfrica. There he will serve alongside Congolese leaders to equip local church leaders in order to help them address issues such as corruption, violence, the prosperity gospel and the influx of Islam across the continent.

Additionally, Lee will participate in meetings with community leaders to explore how the Gospel impacts business, commerce and the marketplace.

This will be BrookLink's second visit to Kinshasa in 2 years. We invite you to pray for these important days of equipping “leaders of leaders” in the central region of the African Continent.